Thursday, January 19, 2012

Beyoncé Accused of Skin Lightening in New Promo Ad

A new promotional photo emerged yesterday for Beyoncé's current album, "4," and the internet is up in arms claiming the singer has been white-washed. It appears that a bright light was shining on Beyoncé during the photo shoot (as evidenced by the reflection in her leg), but her face and upper body appear confusingly lighter than everything else in the picture. When you combine her pale-looking skin with her blond hair, some people are accusing Beyoncé of trying to look white.

It's hard to imagine Beyoncé herself requesting a lighter appearance for the image, as there are many other people involved in producing her promotional photos including the photographer, lighting technician, photo editors, and people at her record label, Columbia. If anything Beyoncé's brown skin being lightened may only confuse fans who would have trouble recognizing her.

It's also important to note that is not the first time Beyoncé has appeared to be lighter in a photograph. Some said her cover photo for "4" also made the singer appear lighter. And in 2008, L'Oreal was accused of digitally lightening her ads for Feria hair color. As people become much more savvy and familiar with tools like Photoshop, we're more likely to call out questionable images that appear to have been altered.